Educational, Federal, Government
Because of tough sentencing laws enacted by Congress beginning in the 1980s. Mandatory minimum sentences, sentencing guidelines and other provisions have greatly increased defendants’ potential exposure to long sentences, if convicted by a jury. In practice, the...
Educational, Federal, Government
The Defenders Services program has grown in size and caseload. In 1973, 15 of the nation’s 94 federal judicial districts were served by full-time defender offices. By FY 2013, that had grown to 91 districts. The system handled 54,000 representations in 1973,...
Educational, Federal, Government
August 20, 1964—the President signed into law the Criminal Justice Act (CJA), which for the first time assured professional legal counsel in federal courts by paying an hourly fee for court appointed lawyers. Six years later, Congress established a full-time federal...
